The TNM Super League first round wrap up took an unexpected twist yesterday as leaders Mighty Wanderers were held to frustrating 1-1 draw by underdogs Chitipa United at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre.
Disaster struck early for the Nomads as defender Peter Cholopi gifted Chitipa United the opener in the 11th minute with a lazy back-pass, pounced on by Player of the Match Andrew Joseph, who tapped in coolly past a helpless Chancy Mtete.
tries to beat Chitipa’s Asuman
Julious. | Bobby Kabango
But the hosts regrouped and levelled matters in the 28th minute when Blessings Singini rose high to nod in a fine corner from Francisco Madinga.
Despite dominating possession, Wanderers could not break the deadlock as Chitipa defended with grit and purpose.
The draw takes Wanderers to 34 points, just four ahead of arch-rivals FCB Nyasa Bullets, who face Mafco this afternoon at Champions Stadium in Mponela, Dowa with a golden chance to cut the gap to a single point.
Wanderers head coach Bob Mpinganjira in a post-match interview was left frustrated by the result.
He said: “It was a very difficult game, I should admit it. Our approach was not up to date. We started the game at a low pace, giving our opponents room to attack us and again we conceded so early, a goal we could have avoided.”
His counterpart, Kondwa Ikwanga said he was satisfied with a point away from home.
“Not bad at all, althrough we could have loved to bag full points,” he said.
In Lilongwe, Silver Strikers suffered similar frustrations at Silver Stadium, drawing 0-0 against a disciplined Mighty Tigers outfit.
The Bankers also dominated proceedings but lacked the cutting edge to breach Tigers’ compact defence.
Tigers goalkeeper Sunganani Mponda delivered Player of the Match performance as his instinctive reflexed kept away the danger for the Blantyre-based outfit.
The result leaves Silver at 27 points and further adrift in the title hunt and raises questions over their inconsistency in their title defence.
All eyes now turn to this afternoon’s showdown in Mponela as Bullets, fresh from a 2-0 win over Mzuzu City Hammers, know a win over Mafco could blow the title race wide open.
Speaking ahead of the clash, Bullets coach Peter Mponda urged his side to stay focused.
“We need to build our confidence from the result, not necessarily the performance,” he said.
But he admitted the weight of expectation could weigh heavy.
“Pressure will always be with us because we are the biggest team in Malawi and we have to get used to play with it,” said Mponda.
